Page 50 of King of Night

“And the Horsemen?”Uriel goes on, eyes narrowing.He really doesn’t trust me.

“The demons belong to Osiris for now.If we can figure out how to destroy them, we will.But since we haven’t been able to, they’re going to be locked up like they were before.The riders are innocent,” I add.“And we’ve temporarily weakened that demon in a hope to defeat Paimon.He’s strong.”

“So am I,” Uriel says, sounding a little cocky.“Leave him to me.”

Actually killing Paimon isn’t going to be the issue.Sending Beal to Hell wasn’t that hard when I opened up the ground and shoved him to his fiery grave.It’s getting to Paimon that will be the challenge.If Uriel can weaken him enough for me to attack with hellfire from one side and Osiris burns him with Underworld fire from the other…it’ll be a done deal.

“Okay,” I say and bob my head up and down.“Every time he’s attacked, he’s come from all sides.And when I say he’s powerful, I mean his powers are unpredictable.Whether it’s smoke acting like ropes tying you to the ground or freaking demonic birds attacking from above, it’s like he’s in an impenetrable tower.”

“Divide and conquer,” Uriel goes on.“Demons like a Paimon surround themselves with other powerful demons that they will sacrifice without hesitation.”

“That sounds fitting,” I tell him.“Especially because every time he’s attacked me, he’s been in astral form, so he’s never been directly in the line of danger.”Thinking about it that way makes Drea’s claims all the more believable that Paimon is protected in hell.I couldn’t just swoop in and kill him.But now he gets to see me in the flesh.And while we might not be in the Avengers, a nephilim, an archangel, a god of the underworld, and a sixteen hundred year old vampire, riding in on the back of one of the Horses of the Apocalypse is a pretty good A-team.

Hoofbeats echo off the stone walls as Lucas and Famine draw near.Even though it’s my husband sitting on top that black horse, the sight of Lucas’s emotionless eyes sends a chill through me.A whoosh of sand blows towards us, but instead of hitting me in the face, it passes right by.Osiris steps from the dust.

“Are you all right?”he asks me.

“For now,” I say, giving Uriel a sideways glance.I’ve stopped walking, but Famine keeps going.The rhythmic clicking of hoofbeats sounds around us, and we all start towards the throne room.I turn around telekinetically pick up Julian‘s dagger, grasping it tightly in my hand.They are dead demons outside the doors of the throne room that Osiris has taken care of.Uriel presses forward and throws out his hands, opening the doors.

At first, the room appears empty, but it doesn’t take long to sense the demonic energy coming off and waves.

“Paimon!”Uriel booms, voice reverberating off the stone walls in the grand throne room.“It is time you stop playing house and come out here and fight for the throne as you should have!”

A few seconds of silence tick by and then, suddenly, chaos reigns around us and demons come from the shadows.

“Lucas!”I shout, reaching out and touching his thigh as he pushes the horse into a trot.He turns his head ever so slightly, eyes meeting mine, as he sends Famine forward.A sickle materializes in his hand, but instead of cutting down crops, he cuts through the demons, slicing their bodies and their demonic souls in half.It’s a terrifyingly beautiful sight.There’s no stopping him, and I just hope I can get him off the horse in time.

Tendrils of smoke rise from the ground, attempting to wrap around the horse’s thin legs.Famine continues walking, breaking free from the bonds.Holy shit.These demons are a force to be reckoned with, and in the wrong hands they could easily bring about global destruction and a very short matter of time.

Uriel moves to the center of the room, stepping up on the large platform that holds Lucifer’s throne.“Paimon!”he shouts again, and great wings appear behind him, reminding me of hawk wings.“If you want this throne, I challenge you to it.”

A part of me wonders, and wishes, if Uriel really would take the throne just to keep a demon off of it.Seems like it could solve a lot of my problems if an archangel was back in Hell and Uriel was off my back because he was trapped down here.

Right as I see Paimon step from the shadows, looking like a cheap cosplay of Luke Skywalker, more demons come out of nowhere.Binx and Scarlet, who had gone up ahead of us, circle back, defending me as I start to tear through the demons.

These demons have powers, and it’s not as easy to fight them off.I get shoved back and hit with an obsidian blade, clipping me in the shoulder.It burns, but isn’t enough to slow me down.I look through the chaos and see Famine, now cantering around the throne room.Lucas’s face is splattered with blood and I suddenly realize that vampires don’t have a thirst for demon blood.

Which mean—oh shit—two demons with boils and charred flesh lunge at me.Binx knocks one away but the other grabs me, burning my skin as it grips my arm.I summon a bright ball of fire and shove it in his face, finishing the job.I get to my feet just in time to see Famine charging at both Uriel and Paimon.

“Lucas!”I shout, but it’s too late.He swings the sickle, slicing through both Uriel and Paimon.Uriel stumbles back, bright light spilling from his middle instead of blood.He recovers, but Paimon goes down.

“Callie!”Osiris calls, sprinting between demons.“Get him off the horse.Now!”

I throw out my hands, blasting Paimon with hellfire.Any demon in my burns, and Osiris comes to a sliding halt in front of Paimon, thrusting his hands into the flames and wrapping Paimon in chains to keep him from escaping.Then I turn, eyes zeroing in on Lucas.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, summoning a big ball of blue energy.It has to hurt in order to get Lucas off the demon.I inhale, bring my hand back, and throw the energy ball at Lucas.I close eyes as it hits him, and Scarlet does a flying leap through the air, tackling Lucas off the horse.

I run across the room to Lucas, killing a demon on my way.He’s on the ground, smoke coming from his burning flesh.

“I’m so sorry,” I cry, patting at his shirt which is still smoldering.Lucas slowly sits up and brushes away flakes of burned skin.

“It’s okay,” he says, looking into my eyes for a moment before springing to his feet.He pulls me to him, and for a brief moment, everything fades away.But then we become painfully too aware of everything around us.The chaos as increased tenfold, and with Paimon in chains on the floor, the demons have turned on each other.

Famine is still cantering around, and without a rider, has no one to control him.His decorative saddle and bridle are gone, and my eyes widen when I realize the energy ball knocked Osiris’s scorpion off too.

And I was right about Famine wanting a taste for blood that’s not demonic.There probably isn’t anything more pure than divinity running through veins, and Famine slows, turning his head to look for Uriel…who’s still struggling.

He gets to his feet only to fall again, and the demons are scattering like mice as the demonic horse starts making his way toward the fallen archangel.I know I have to do something.Heart in my throat, I reach deep down inside of me and pull out every last ounce of power I have.

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